After the battle of Fredericksburg the Union army went into winter
quarters at Falmouth, only a few miles away, while the Confederates
took up their encampment for the winter at Fredericksburg.
General Joseph Hooker, who was popularly known as "Fighting Joe
Hooker," had succeeded General Burnside in command of the Army of
the Potomac, which numbered about 130,000 men, while that of the
Confederates numbered about 60,000.
Hooker conceived the idea to divide his army and leave Sedgwick with
about 40,000 men to make a feint upon the Confederates, stationed about
Fredericksburg, and himself with the remainder of the army to move
around Lee's army and take a position at Chancellorsville, a small
place in a wilderness country only a few miles from Fredericksburg,
and by doing this, take Lee by surprise. These plans of Hooker have
been considered by war historians as being well laid if they had been
carried out. Lee was on the alert, and had heard of Hooker's plans,
and was not to be caught in the trap. Lee, paying little attention to
Sedgwick, east of Fredericksburg, had turned to face Hooker. By rapid
night marches he met Hooker's army before it reached its destination.
His advance columns were pushed back by the Federals, who succeeded
in taking the position which was assigned to them, Meade on the left
and Slocum on the right, with adequate support in the rear. All was in
readiness and had favorable positions when, to the amazement of all the
officers, Hooker ordered the whole army to fall back to the position it
had occupied the day before, thereby leaving the advantage with Lee,
who moved his forces up to the positions which the Federals evacuated
and began feeling the Federal lines with some cannonading during the
evening of May 1st.
The Confederates were in extreme danger, having one large army in
their front and another almost as large as theirs in their rear near
Fredericksburg. But Lee decided to make one great and decisive blow
at Hooker in front. During the night of May 1st Lee held council with
"Stonewall" Jackson and accepted a plan laid out by him for Jackson to
take part of the army and move around through the dense wood and rough
country and fall upon the right flank of the enemy.
Early on the morning of May 2d the cannonading began its death-song and
the infantry was brought into action. Before long Jackson began, with a
portion of the army, to move off the field, and Hooker, observing this,
believed that Lee's army was in full retreat on Richmond. This movement
proved to be the undoing of Hooker's army, as Jackson was making
for his right flank. It was about five o'clock in the afternoon when
Jackson broke from the woods in a charge upon the unsuspecting troops
of Hooker's right which was under Howard.
The approach of Jackson's forces was first intimated to the Federals by
the bending of shrubbery, the stampede of rabbits and squirrels, and
the flocks of birds in wild flight from the woods. First appeared a few
skirmishers, then the rattling of musketry and the incessant roar of
cannon. On the Confederates came in their impetuous charge. The charge
was so unexpected and terrific that they carried everything before
them. The Federal lines were swept as by tidal waves and rolled up like
a scroll.
This crowning and final stroke of Jackson's military genius was the
result of his own carefully worked-out plan, which had been approved by
Lee.
General Hooker was spending the evening at his headquarters at the
Chancellor House, rejoicing, as he thought, that Jackson was in full
retreat and everything appeared to be going well. Presently the roar of
battle became louder and louder on his right and an officer came up at
full speed to notify him that his right was being fiercely attacked,
was giving away, and would soon be in utter rout. Hooker made haste to
the scene of battle and passed through brigade after brigade of his
forces in retreat and confusion.
He was successful in having Berry re-form his division and charge
the Confederates with fixed bayonets, which partly stopped the
Confederates' advance. This gave the Federal artillery a few minutes
to prepare itself for action. They finally succeeded in stopping the
Confederate advance.
The mighty turmoil was silenced as darkness gathered. The two hostile
forces were concealed in the darkness watching each other. Finally, at
midnight, the order, "Forward!" was given in subdued tones to Sickle's
corps. They stealthily advanced upon the Confederate position and at
heavy loss gained the position sought for.
Between Hooker's and Sedgwick's divisions of the army stood the
Confederate army flushed with the victory of the day, immediately
in front of Sedgwick was Fredericksburg, beyond which loomed
Marye's Heights, strongly guarded by Washington's artillery of the
Confederates. These Heights were the battleground of a few months
before when Burnside tried in vain to drive the Confederates from their
crest.
Shortly after midnight Sedgwick began his march against Marye's Heights
that was fraught with peril and death. At the foot of the slope were
the stone wall and the sunken road, which was the battleground of
a few months before in the battle of Fredericksburg. The crest and
slopes bristled with Confederate cannon and musket. Sedgwick made his
attack directly upon the stone wall in the face of a terrible storm of
artillery and musketry. The first assault failed, but the second met
with more success, as they succeeded in driving the Confederates from
their strong position at the point of the bayonet by their overwhelming
numbers. Sedgwick pushed on to attack Lee in the rear, but Lee was
aware of his advance and dispatched General Early with a strong force
to hold him in check and thus prevent his juncture with Hooker's army
at Chancellorsville. Lee's army and that of Hooker's had been engaged
since early morning in deadly combat.
While this engagement was at its height General Hooker, while leaning
against a pillar on the porch of the Chancellor House, was stunned
and felled to the ground and for some time it was thought that he was
killed. This was done by a cannon ball, which shattered the pillar
against which he was leaning. This injury incapacitated Hooker from
active service the balance of the day and he gave orders for his army
to retire, which was reluctantly done by his subordinate officers. When
his columns began to retire from the field the Confederates increased
their artillery fire, which played upon the retreating columns in blue.
This fire marked the doom of the old Chancellor House, where Hooker
had headquarters. The brick walls were pierced through by cannon balls
and shells exploded in the upper rooms, setting the building on fire.
Fragments of the demolished chimneys rained down upon the wounded in
the lower rooms.
During the entire day's battle there were nineteen women and children,
including some slaves, in the cellar where they had taken refuge. They
were all removed before the complete destruction of the house by fire.
The long, deep trenches, full of Federal and Confederate dead, told the
awful story of Chancellorsville. This scene will never be forgotten by
the survivors of the battle. This was one of the greatest battles yet
fought on the American Continent, and has gone down in history as being
one of the greatest of modern times.
The Union loss was about 17,000, while that of the Confederates was
about 13,000.
Late in the evening of the first day's battle General "Stonewall"
Jackson was mortally wounded, in which the South suffered incalculable
loss. After his brilliant flank march and the evening attack on
Hooker's army had been driven home, at half-past eight, Jackson had
ridden beyond his lines to reconnoiter for the final advance. By the
sudden fire of musketry in his front, he discovered that he was within
the enemy's lines. His party, suddenly turning back and riding at full
speed, was mistook by his own men for the enemy, and his men, firing
a volley of musketry, killed and wounded several of Jackson's party
and mortally wounded Jackson by two shots in the left arm and one in
his right hand. He was taken from his horse by the officers who were
with him, among whom was A. P. Hill. It was found that there was no
immediate conveyance for him to be carried within his lines. Presently
the enemy discovered the commotion and mistaking it as an advance of
the Confederate lines, began to shell the immediate vicinity with grape
and canister, which necessitated the party with Jackson to lie down to
escape the shower of lead which poured over them. The scene about them
was an awful one. The air was pierced by the shrieks of shells and the
cries of the wounded. Finally a stretcher was secured and Jackson was
carried to the rear. One of the bearers was shot down and his place was
taken by another. During the turmoil General W. D. Pender was met, who
expressed the fear that his lines must fall back. General Jackson, in a
clear voice, "You must hold your ground, General Pender; you must hold
your ground to the last, sir." This was his last order to a subordinate
officer.
It was first thought that Jackson's wounds would not prove fatal, but
he developed pneumonia and gradually grew worse, and on the morning
of May 10th it was apparent that he had only a few hours to live; at
times he was unconscious and his mind apparently wandered on previous
battlefields. During one of his unconscious moments he suddenly cried
out, "Order A. P. Hill to prepare for action. Pass the infantry to the
front!"
He then became silent and weak, and his last words were: "Let us cross
over the river and rest in the shade of the trees."
When Lee heard that Jackson had fallen he said: "Any victory would
be dear at such a price." It is thought by many that the result at
Gettysburg would have been different had "The Great Flanker" lived to
have been there. Henderson, the British war historian, said the fame of
"Stonewall" Jackson is no longer the exclusive property of Virginia and
the South; it has become the birthright of every man privileged to call
himself an American.